Classmate Li Zhuangsheng doesn’t want to be reborn

"Xiuyu, do you remember her? This is Xie Jiangqing. You two used to be together a lot..." Li Zhuangsheng enthusiastically introduced her to Li Xiuyu, but he stopped halfway through his sentence, unsure how to continue.

The two did interact frequently during their elementary school years, often attacking or insulting each other.

“I’m not blind, I know she’s Xie Jiangqing.” Li Xiuyu gave him a cold glare.

"Oh, oh." Li Zhuangsheng nodded honestly.

He could tell that Li Xiuyu was unhappy about his relationship with Hu Mengke, but he didn't feel particularly awkward around Li Xiuyu. Li Xiuyu already knew that he and Hu Mengke had been intimate, and had even suggested that they could date.

Besides, this was only seen by Li Xiuyu, not by someone else.

Seeing that Li Xiuyu still had a sour face, Xie Jiangqing couldn't help but feel annoyed. He was a guest; who was he trying to impress with that grumpy look?

But then she thought again that Hu Mengdie was in the wrong first, and she herself was in the wrong, so she couldn't make a scene.

Xie Jiangqing genuinely had no desire to communicate with Li Xiuyu. Even after more than ten years of no contact, she still couldn't forget their past disagreements. However, now that Li Xiuyu was acting as Li Zhuangsheng's "guardian," she had to face him regardless of her feelings.

"Li Zhuangsheng, I heard you had a fever. How are you feeling now?" Xie Jiangqing smiled. "You seem to be in good spirits."

"Ah, it's nothing, I've had an IV drip, I'm all better now!" Li Zhuangsheng waved his hand.

"Really? I knew you looked so energetic, it's good that you're alright!" Xie Jiangqing smiled and took Hu Mengdie's hand. "Hu Mengdie told me today that I scolded her, and she regretted it and wanted to apologize to you. That's why she specially bought fruit tonight!"

"It's okay, it's okay, I understand!"

Li Zhuangsheng waved his hand; he harbored no hatred towards Hu Mengdie. Although he felt a bit resentful that morning, he thought that she hadn't hurt him, and she was actually quite pitiful. Besides, he and her sister had already been intimate, so he felt he had even less right to blame her.

"Li Zhuangsheng, Li Xiuyu, you can scold her as much as you want, don't hold back!" Xie Jiangqing said, pulling Hu Mengdie's hand.

"It's nothing, it's nothing!" Li Zhuangsheng quickly waved his hand again, "Really, it's nothing!"

Li Xiuyu glanced at him sideways and just sneered.

Xie Jiangqing lowered her hand and looked at Li Zhuangsheng with a smile: "You've always been like this since you were little, gentle and generous."

"Not really..."

Li Zhuangsheng was embarrassed by his old classmate's direct praise.

"And they're so easy to fool," Xie Jiangqing thought to herself.

Hu Mengdie glanced at Xie Jiangqing and thought to herself, "You're just being overly nervous. What serious thing could possibly happen?"
"I'm sorry, Li... Li Zhuangsheng." Hu Mengdie finally stammered, biting her lip gently, "Last night..."

"It's okay, it's okay, don't take it to heart!"

Li Zhuangsheng interrupted her. A brief silence followed.

"Li Zhuangsheng, I heard you two have lost your memory. Can't you remember anything at all?"

It was Xie Jiangqing who broke the deadlock once again.

"Hmm... I really can't remember, I have absolutely no recollection of it!"

Li Zhuangsheng shook his head with a wry smile. Talking to Xie Jiangqing was relatively easy; after all, they were old friends, and their relationship had been quite good back then. Now… he hadn't expected that upon meeting her again, she had become such a stunning beauty. Although he had thought she was quite pretty when he was in elementary school, she was thin and frail back then.

"So that means you only remember things from before your second year of high school?"

"Yes, I have a pretty clear memory of that time."

Xie Jiangqing pointed to herself: "What about our memories? For you, those shouldn't be too long ago!"

"That's been four or five years..." Li Zhuangsheng narrowed his eyes slightly, "but I can still remember quite a lot!"

Xie Jiangqing asked with interest, "Really? What do you remember?"

Li Zhuangsheng thought to himself that what he remembered most was how you and Li Xiuyu argued every other day. However, facing Xie Jiangqing, who seemed like an older sister, he didn't have the emotional intelligence to say such a thing.

Arguing is not a respectable thing, so there's no need to bring up Li Xiuyu and Xie Jiangqing's affair.

Li Zhuangsheng thought for a moment and said, "I remember you transferred here. You weren't very good at math when you transferred, so Teacher Hu asked me to help you."

Xie Jiangqing nodded with a smile: "Yes, yes, I remember you were very good at math back then, haha, who knew you would become a writer!"

"And another thing, you said you could read palms back then, and then you squeezed my hand for a long time... saying that I was destined to never find a wife in this life!" Li Zhuangsheng said indignantly, staring at Xie Jiangqing. "I only found out the truth back then when I got to junior high school!"

Xie Jiangqing was stunned for a moment, then suddenly felt a chill run down her spine!

Holy crap, why are you saying this now?! Yes, I admit, I was out of my mind and wanted to find an excuse to hold your hand, but don't say it in a situation like this! Are you crazy? Your wife is right here! I didn't realize you were so scheming, deliberately trying to drive a wedge between us best friends, huh?!

"What are you saying... Haha... Didn't you find a wife? She's so beautiful!" Memories of her past flooded back, and Xie Jiangqing's forehead broke out in a sweat.

Please stop talking about it. It happened so long ago, I've completely forgotten about it!
"Yes, men should use the left hand and women the right, but you showed me the right hand back then!" Li Zhuangsheng slammed his hand on the table. "So what you said back then was definitely wrong, and it made me feel uncomfortable for several days!"

Xie Jiangqing was taken aback, meeting Li Zhuangsheng's slightly aggrieved gaze. She fell silent for a moment, a huge weight lifted from her shoulders, realizing her worries had been unnecessary.

But taking a deep breath, Xie Jiangqing suddenly felt an urge to punch him.

"Haha, sorry, sorry..." Xie Jiangqing laughed through gritted teeth, "My palm reading skills weren't up to par back then!"

"It's alright, it's all in the past now, I almost forgot about it, I wouldn't even remember if you hadn't mentioned it!" Li Zhuangsheng waved his hand generously.

Xie Jiangqing's lips twitched slightly.

“And another thing… let me think…” Li Zhuangsheng squinted, rubbing his chin with his index finger, recalling intently, “When you were in class, you liked to put your legs on mine…”

"Hey, hey, hey, you're talking nonsense again!" Xie Jiangqing quickly denied, "Impossible, you must be mistaken!"

“Impossible…” Li Zhuangsheng shook his head decisively.

He remembered one time, probably around National Day, Xie Jiangqing once again put her legs on his. At that time, the air was still filled with the lingering heat of late summer, and most people were still wearing summer school uniforms similar to sailor suits.

At the time, Li Zhuangsheng was in a bad mood, and since the other person wasn't yet Princess Moon, he grabbed her leg and tried to pull her down. During the struggle, Li Zhuangsheng accidentally lifted her skirt and saw the white panties with a pink rabbit pattern on them... and Xie Jiangqing started crying.

Terrified, Li Zhuangsheng apologized repeatedly and agreed to let her continue sitting on his lap. Only then did she forgive him and not report him to the teacher. (End of Chapter)